DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan – At least 12 people were killed and about 35 wounded Saturday after an explosives-laden vehicle struck a security checkpoint in northwestern Pakistan, followed by gunfire targeting an ambulance responding to the attack.
The bombing occurred at the Aman Mela checkpoint in the Darazinda area of Dera Ismail Khan district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, officials said. The checkpoint is located on the Dera Ismail Khan-Quetta road near the boundary between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
Bilal Faizi, a spokesman for the provincial emergency service, said the blast destroyed the checkpoint and caused casualties among security personnel and civilians.
The Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, claimed responsibility for the attack.
Ambulance comes under fire
The attack did not end with the initial explosion.
Emergency crews were transporting victims from the scene when gunmen opened fire on an ambulance, according to provincial emergency-service officials. One rescue worker was killed and two others were wounded, according to the latest Associated Press account. Pakistani government officials separately confirmed that an ambulance carrying people injured in the bombing was attacked.
Local Pakistani reporting has given different casualty figures for the rescue workers, with some reports saying two emergency workers were killed. The number has not been consistently reported across authorities.
The attack on the ambulance added a second layer of danger for emergency personnel attempting to evacuate victims from the initial blast.
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Checkpoint destroyed in vehicle bombing
Police and emergency officials said the attacker drove an explosives-laden vehicle into the Aman Mela checkpoint.
The explosion heavily damaged the checkpoint and a nearby house. Rescue teams recovered victims from the debris and transported injured people to medical facilities in Darazinda and Dera Ismail Khan.
Early casualty reports varied as rescue operations continued. Initial reports put the death toll at 11, while later official and media accounts raised it to at least 12. About 35 people were reported wounded in the latest accounts.
The dead included women and a child, according to emergency-service and media reports.
TTP claims responsibility
The TTP claimed responsibility for the bombing.
The group, formally known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, has carried out repeated attacks against Pakistani security forces and other targets, particularly in northwestern Pakistan.
The TTP is separate from Afghanistan’s Taliban government, although the two are closely aligned. Pakistani authorities have repeatedly accused Afghanistan of allowing TTP militants to operate from Afghan territory. Afghan authorities deny permitting their territory to be used to launch attacks against other countries.
The claim of responsibility has not independently established all details of how the attack was planned or carried out.
Attack follows renewed Pakistan-Afghanistan tensions
The bombing occurred amid heightened tensions along Pakistan’s western frontier.
Two days earlier, fighting along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border killed at least 13 Afghan Taliban fighters, according to the Pakistani government. Pakistan had also carried out strikes on what it described as militant hideouts inside Afghanistan.
The latest violence comes as China, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have been involved in efforts to mediate between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The renewed fighting and militant attacks have complicated those efforts.
Dera Ismail Khan lies near South Waziristan, an area that has long been associated with militant activity and Pakistani military operations.
The district has experienced major attacks before. In December 2023, a suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden vehicle into the main gate of a police station in Dera Ismail Khan, killing at least 23 security personnel.
Investigation continues
Security forces cordoned off the latest attack site while bomb-disposal and investigative teams worked to establish the circumstances of the explosion.
Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue confirmed that personnel from Pakistan Customs, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police and the provincial Excise and Taxation Department were among those affected at the joint checkpoint. The agency also confirmed that the ambulance carrying injured people came under fire.
Authorities have not publicly established all details surrounding the second attack on the emergency vehicle.
The investigation is expected to examine the vehicle used in the bombing, the identity of the suicide attacker, the attackers who opened fire on the ambulance and whether the two operations were coordinated.
For residents and emergency workers in Dera Ismail Khan, the attack demonstrated the continuing security risks surrounding roads and checkpoints in a region where militant violence remains a persistent threat.
Reporting Credit: Pakistan Federal Board of Revenue — confirmation of the attack on the joint checkpoint and ambulance carrying victims; Khyber Pakhtunkhwa emergency services / Rescue 1122 — casualty and rescue-operation information; Dera Ismail Khan police — initial information on the checkpoint bombing and investigation; Pakistan government and security authorities — official information on the security situation and subsequent operations.
